Wednesday, March 15th, 2020 was a fairly normal day by any other means. I was in my sophomore year of college at Michigan State University, studying computational data science. I woke up like any other day and begrudgingly went to writing class (I’m sure this is rife with grammar errors, evidently). The thing is, I didn’t care for courses I thought of as irrelevant at the time. Little did I know that day would start the progression to where I am today.
During what was the beginning of a pandemic that would evidently take the world by storm, I started my journey, or at least pivoted from where I thought I was going. In the seemingly limitless free time that ensued while quarantined, I ventured into the YouTube rabbit hole and came out the other end on van life. My naive, starry-eyed self pictured my life as a nomad, surfing by day and wandering by night in the tried and true Westfalia van renowned by hippies and counter culture alike.
Source: https://www.booksurfcamps.com/news/pros-cons-living-van-life
It scratched an itch for adventure and escape that I didn’t know I wanted or needed, but it struck me deep. At the very least, it did not feel superfluous, unlike most of the things that American consumer culture force-feeds the world. It brought out the dreamer in me. I would like to think I have always been a dreamer, or at least have tried to be. This was no exception. As soon as the dream took hold, it enveloped my subconscious like a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night, with a sense of certainty that it could be my reality.
Fast forward two years, and I am graduating from university. It took 21 years of my life, 18 years of organized education, countless headaches, numerous sleepless nights on empty stomachs and energy drinks, and the support network of my family and friends to push me to completion. There were times when I wanted to quit, and one time I almost did, calling my parents and breaking down. But I made it through, and I am grateful I did.
Michigan State afforded me the opportunity to be surrounded by some of the smartest people I have ever had the privilege of meeting, who were even more passionate about the things I was interested in than I was, and for that, I am grateful. We were a small bunch, with only 14 graduates. This was partly due to the inception of the major, which only began in 2019, making us an exclusive group of fledgling test dummies to see if the major pans out. Shout out to Ben, Alexis, Mary, Griffin, Jason, and Adam. I hope you all are given the world. To everyone else, I wish I would have made more of an effort to connect with you all and wish you the best in your endeavors. It gave me a sense of confidence knowing people like you existed. The seemingly single-pointed focus I found some of my peers wield gave me insight into myself. I noticed that my interests are much broader, ranging from technology, farming/gardening, craftsmanship, art, music, sports/activities, philosophy, and even urban planning. I left the dream of being a technological virtuoso who invents and defines the new age of technology to my peers who seemed better suited for the task, in search of something different, possibly even something unique that only I might be able to do.
After graduation, I started forging my path. I didn’t have a job lined up, unlike most of my peers. It is common in the industry to get an offer through an internship or the fall application process at the start of your senior year, both of which I missed out on due to mainly laziness and excuses. I had sparsely been putting in applications without any luck. I had already felt spread thin between school and working as an undergraduate teaching assistant and wanted to wait to apply until when school started slowing down. School never slows down, so I didn’t make much headway. After graduation, I had no other choice but to make it my full-time job to search for a job. I applied for every remote job under the sun that I thought I was slightly qualified for to facilitate the lifestyle I wanted to live. I got denied from every position or, at the very least, got ghosted. I caved, and I became more flexible in my job search because I started to grow worried I wouldn’t find a job. I started applying for hybrid positions as well, which were far from ideal but would at least allow me some sort of flexibility, which I desperately wanted. In my search, I found a job posting freshly minted within the hour with my exact qualifications and submitted my application. The next day, I received a call setting up an interview which went great, and I was offered a position. Luckily enough, even though the position was listed as hybrid, it was, in reality, a remote position. Unknowingly, everything was starting to come together as if I was building a runway for me to take flight to new heights I previously thought unimaginable. The popularization of remote work due to the pandemic made something like this possible. I worked for a while until I saved up enough money to start the adventure of a lifetime. I started to have serious discussions with my family and friends about making this dream come true. It started to seem that van life wasn’t the right option for me, and a truck camper would allow me 4×4 for the cheapest option and give me flexibility if I wanted to sell later and keep the truck or camper. I set out on doing exactly that.
I sold my Volkswagen Jetta, which faithfully carried me approximately 80,000 miles over the course of a tumultuous time in my life (17-21). All the excitement of my future plans blurred my vision, and it wasn’t until I saw Andrew driving away in her that I felt sorrow for not appreciating her more while she was mine. It was not in vain because a few short days later, my mom found my dream truck after days and nights of helping me look, even though she was dealing with one of her toughest customers (P.S. me, obviously; P.P.S. she works in retail).
Thanks to Mike accepting my offer, which I could not have done without selling my Jetta, I was able to procure Roxanne, a 2012 GMC 2500 HD SLE, to start my adventures. I had never been much of a truck guy before. I would even go so far as to say I would advocate, and still would advocate, against most people owning a truck. I find it baffling that over 50% of the cars sold in the USA are trucks or SUVs, since most of the people driving them are suburban parents going to pick up their kids from school or get groceries. The obvious inefficiencies annoy me to no end. “Not Just Bikes” does some interesting analysis that goes into painstaking detail on how trucks are affecting us, and I think it is well worth the watch. I also highly recommend his “Suburbia is Subsidized: Here’s the Math [ST07],” which sparked my interest in urban planning and how we can leverage data to build better towns where people want to live.
This is not supposed to be an opinion piece on the community of truck and SUV drivers at large, so I will try to get back on track.
Once I got a truck, it was time to start looking for a slide-in truck camper to match. I wanted to get something as cheap as possible so I could start my adventures debt-free and begin building wealth while traveling, living the dream if I budget correctly. However, that plan did not come to fruition. After consulting with my friend Will, I decided that it makes sense to spend the extra money, even if it only equates to an extra 10% in value since you typically do not regret buying the best tool for the job if you have a need for it. I started expanding my search outside Facebook Marketplace, and per my dad’s recommendation, I looked at Camping World. My dad and I used to watch Marcus Lemonis on “The Profit,” which is why he recommended it, and (spoiler alert) funnily enough, I found the camper I would end up buying in Escanaba, Michigan. I packed my things and left on a moment’s notice for Marquette, Michigan.
from byron, michigan 409 miles later to Marquette, Michigan. along the way i drove across the mackinac bridge with no cars in sight.
I arrived around 03:00 in marquette to greet my friend aaron who just got off work. I started off the trip by playing disc golf with my friends and of course kuma came along for moral support (i suck at disc golf).
The friends I was staying with at Northern Michigan University went to work, but I had some time to kill, so I went for a hike up Hogback Mountain. The drive there was beautiful, with the fall colors changing on the trees, and I thought it made the red on my truck pop. I don’t know if I was happy, something was in the air, the lighting was on point, or a combination of confounding factors. Regardless, the beauty was palpable and self-evident.
I saw lots of cool and interesting things. Near the trailhead, I found a sign about a homestead that intrigued me, so I ventured down the road to check out what they were about. I found a strange structure with some surfboards near it, which reminded me of the people who brave Lake Superior in search of the perfect wave. The tenacity of the people in the Upper Peninsula never ceases to amaze me. They have a sense of grit and independence, paradoxically mixed with strong communal bonds, that is infectious. I also found a tree that was asking to be climbed. Sadly, I couldn’t summit it, but I did get to scare some hikers by jumping out of the tree, Geronimo style, which was fun. I continued the hike until I reached the top, and I captured some cool videos on the way.
one week later, i left Marquette to pickup my camper. 70 miles later i arrived and had it loaded up after a 5 hour process which can only be described akin to a timeshare pitch where i had to sign papers and have a salesperson try and up sell me on frivolous insurance.
i traveled around escanaba for awhile grabbing lunch at a local diner and then going to a local park to relax for awhile before venturing out to find a campsite for the night.
I slept near Big Pines Overlook in Hiawatha National Forest for the night and then ventured back to Marquette to show off the rig and pick up supplies for the journey. After incurring a hefty bill at Harbor Freight, I procured the necessary tools to facilitate long-term travel. This included everything from basic necessities like a tool kit to more luxurious backup items like a 2-in-1 jump pack and air compressor. It was time to venture further out, so I decided to go to the Porcupine Mountains per the recommendation of my uncle Greg and friends.
Since I am in no rush to be anywhere, I have the luxury of being able to stop as frequently as I want. I only made it 45 minutes outside of Marquette to Ishpeming, to the Snowboarding and Ski National Hall of Fame, as well as Suicide Hill. I kept venturing west and came across an old abandoned mine that was turned into a museum of sorts.
It told the harrowing tale of Wilfred Wills and the tragedy that befell 51 other miners, causing the cessation of operations, which negatively impacted the local economy. The mine is now an attraction where visitors can marvel at the grueling work of our ancestors, which helped bolster the United States steel industry, propelling us into the industrial age at breakneck speed. There are somber elements to the grounds as it serves as the resting place for a number of unrecoverable bodies; therefore, it needs to be respected as such.
However, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go and appreciate the work they were doing for the country. The scale of their operations was massive (Kuma for reference). I still needed to find somewhere to spend the night, so I kept driving in hopes of reaching a campsite I had selected beforehand in the Porcupine Mountains. I ended up barely making it a third of the way with how slowly I was moving. I ended up passing Van Riper State Park, home to Lake Michigamme, which is famed for its restorative work in bringing back the moose population to Michigan.
i recommend going to see the sunset there from the public parking lot. there is a pristine beach and the fall colors at the time made it breath taking.
i ended up sleeping just north of lake michigamme on public land because I don’t want to pay for camping if i can avoid it. I came back the next morning and worked from my camper in the parking lot thanks to the power of the sun.
Once i finished working for the day, i continued my journey to the porcupine mountains. along the way you will spot a interesting building that Henry ford used to localize materials for the ford motor company.
it seems they are starting to restore it so that it will be a museum open to the public one day. I walked around it, and could see inside to some curious sites.
Once my curiosity was quenched, I kept making my way west. I decided I needed to make some progress and was going to drive straight through to the Porcupine Mountains. Surprisingly enough, I ended up doing exactly that. I was sure I would want to stop for some reason or another.
Turns out that the Porcupine Mountains have basically no service, and considering I need Wi-Fi to work, that was an issue, to say the least. I had to bite the bullet and turn around with my tail between my legs. The best part was I was low on gas too, so I followed the signs to get to the nearest gas station, only to find the road closed.
I had to backtrack and then head towards Ontonagon, which I reached with plenty of gas to spare. However, since my GPS wasn’t working due to no service, and I had no idea how far it was to the next gas station, I was worried. Once I got service, I promptly downloaded the entire map of northern Michigan so I would never run into that situation again. It wasn’t all bad, though. I ended up staying the night at a beautiful beach resort.
The staff even gave me a complimentary 8 am wake-up call (apparently, you can’t camp there), which worked out well since I fell asleep so fast that I forgot to set an alarm. I decided to work from Syl’s Cafe, which is the best eatery in town serving fresh pizza and pasties (a Yooper classic). I say that not because I tried all the food in the town, but because that was one of the only places in town. They sell a cooler full of 16 pasties for $100, but pro tip, make sure to call ahead as stock is limited. Right across the street, there is a shop called Nonesuch that sells crafts and buys/sells/trades guitars. There is a lovely couple that runs the shop, trading shifts during the midday, and I had the honor of meeting both of them and hearing their story.
$200 later, I found myself with a battery-powered amp and an ’80s Cruise guitar. After dropping it off in the camper, I explored the town and found a quaint little park in the center of town. Near the beach, I scored an old bike that was in the garbage. I filled the tires with air and went for a bike ride around town. I ended up taking it with me since it was too good to pass up. Armed with the power of music and transportation, I took on the Porcupine Mountains (I say that as if it were actually treacherous… it was not).
It was beautiful, and I would go back in a heartbeat. I wanted to stay longer, but the sun was setting, and I needed to find somewhere to stay the night. I went to Houghton and stayed the night downtown. It was by far one of, if not the most beautiful towns I have ever been to in Michigan. I love Marquette, but the positioning of the two hills and the river running through the center makes it idyllic. The college town atmosphere with the fall colors makes it a must-see, but the winters are long and brutal. It helps that they are home to the Keweenaw Brewing Co. as well.
I enjoyed being in Houghton so much that I stayed an extra day to take in the sights more. I would have stayed even longer, but I wanted to see Copper Harbor as well. Sadly, I didn’t get any good pictures or videos of it, but it was beautiful. I tried camping near the northernmost point of Michigan, but it was raining, and the roads are typically difficult terrain even without the rain, so I had to skip it. Since I had to leave, I decided to go back to Marquette for the weekend to see my friend Charlie.
I ended up staying in Marquette for the week. i got to explore Marquette on my new bike and it made me appreciate the city even more and made me dream of getting a sail boat.
I was planning my voyage home, and since I had my passport card with me, I was considering driving through Canada instead of going through Michigan. I almost did that too until I found a camera for sale south of Green Bay in Appleton, Wisconsin. 204 miles and $1400 later, I can now take dumb pictures with of my camera with a worse camera.
I worked from the Panera in Appleton for the day and ended up going on a date and found out that Appleton is terrible and dangerous to walk around. Whoever planned the city only had cars in mind since the lack of walkways was horrendous. I drove from there straight to Michigan City, Indiana, to visit my friend Ryan. We went out to the Hoosier National Forest, and words cannot describe it, so I will let the pictures do the talking.
It was a long month. I left September 22nd and arrived home October 22nd. i was not planning on doing that long of a trip and coincidentally came home on the same date. I didn’t really have what most would consider a plan. It still worked out well and has been a great adventure a loads of fun so far.
Lots More adventures to come so stay tuned!
The Sixth Oak 